Federation of Australia

The Federation of Australia occurred in 1901, when Australia's six separate British colonies united to form one nation, the Commonwealth of Australia. This act centralized governance, creating a federal government responsible for national matters while each colony (now state) maintained its own local government. Federation aimed to strengthen economic ties, defend against external threats, and establish a unified identity. It marked Australia's transition from a collection of colonies under British rule to an independent nation within the British Empire, now known as a constitutional monarchy with its own federal system of government.